


Together We Are Stronger

by spacec



Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: F/M, Mandalorian OC, actually theres 2 oc's, i have no idea whats going on in the timeline, like really, not regular updates at all, sorry i have no idea how to romance but i'm trying, sorry this is like the first fanfic i've ever written so it really crusty, they don't like each other at first
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-25
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-18 04:29:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28986399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spacec/pseuds/spacec
Summary: This fanfic takes place right after season two, like literally right after Din returns to Navarro from giving his precious child to Luke for training.Then he finds a disoriented Mandalorian(the story is told in this POV) in the sewers, looking for the rest of the covert - completely unaware of what has happened.extremely slow burn - like extremely slow. ;)
Relationships: Din Djarin/Original Female Character(s), Din Djarin/Original Female Mandalorian Character(s)
Kudos: 3





	1. Ticket Out

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I'm just posting this from FanFiction.net cause I think I might move over here and make this place where I post most of my work. The account name is spacec also if you want to check it out, but it has the same stuff as here. 
> 
> This is actually the very first fanfiction that I wrote, I just posted my other story first to make things in chronological order here. This story takes place after my first story called "What Comes Next" but you don't really need to read that in order to understand this story, that story just gives more context to what's happening in this one and what mando and the others were up to before they meet my OC.

I pant and take in all the air that can fill my lungs. _I cannot let fatigue get to me now._

The ship door is starting to close in ahead of me.

I run faster and harder one foot in front of the other, over and over, the cycle repeating quicker each second until I make it to barely shouting distance,

"Wait- !" Then I choke on my words, through my cracking lips and sandy tongue, I can taste blood in my mouth.

The door is starting to close as the unknowing pilot gets ready to take off. _There might not be another chance to get off this godforsaken planet for a long time, give it all you got right here, right now._ I cough again this time intentionally to clear up my airway, and I turn my amplifier as high as it can go.

I scream the word as loud as I can, "Stop!"

I can hear my voice modulated and so loud, I hear it echoing inside of my helmet and also echo through the forest I am currently trying to maneuver through. Good. They should be able to hear me. I scope in on the door and watch it as it pauses momentarily as if the pilot is double-checking whether they heard someone say something and is only waiting for confirmation that they're not hearing voices in their head. I am almost to the ship and I scream again,

"Stop! Open the door!"

I break through the forest and I feel like I'm on the verge of passing out. I make myself clear and try not to look like some forest lunatic, even though I can tell without looking at myself that I resemble one. I stand by the ship and its motionless door, and I tilt my head around to see the trail of havoc I've created through this forest, It looks like it stretched for miles on end. I start remembering that when I started running I was in an open field when I spotted the oh so speck of a ship land behind this forest. How long did I run? 50, maybe 60 miles straight? That would be a new personal record by a long shot. The hissing of the door starting to open up snaps me back to the present, then the door stops again so that there's a slightly bigger gap than before. Still panting and gasping for air, I try to make myself as non-threatening as possible, even though I hold armed grenades and two custom blasters on either side of my waist. Before I forget, I turn my amplifier back to normal so I don't blast their ears out. A man's voice comes from within the ship,

"What do you want from me? I have a blaster aimed directly at your helmet so I better have an answer in the next 10 seconds."

_Is this guy this stupid?_

I reply as smoothly as possible, "I am no threat. I-" _wheeze_ "I need passage back to the planet-" _gasp_ "planet Nevaro." _cough_ "I have credits," _pants_ "Is this enough?"

I reach for one of my belt compartments and I find the little bag of credits I have kept so dearly, I was saving up for whenever I found some beskar on the market since my current state has needed some refurnishing for a while now. I throw the bag down in front of me.

The man speaks again. "Wait. I've seen that type of helmet before, are you a Mandalorian?"

I reply, still trying to catch my breath. "Yes."

"I've heard stories about your race-" he starts.

I interrupt, "Mandalorian is not a race."

"Oh, I-I'm sorry ma'am. I meant I've heard stories about your _kind_ … What are you doing out here? You don't seem to fit the description of a strong, unbeatable warrior… "

_Ouch._

But I don't blame him, I am covered in green, shiny leaves and vines, moss and mud, and some blue algae from when I had to swim through the lake earlier. I pick off some of the shrubs and dust off some mud as if that would help make me look more presentable. But the mud only manages to smear and the shrubs uncover even more nasty stuff clinging to me. My panting has slowed to a somewhat normal breathing pace.

"Look. I know I don't fit your description and all, but I'm a busy woman and I need a ride to Nevaro. Are you going to take the credits or not?"

I give myself a little encouragement, I've already recovered to the point where I don't need to choke on myself to speak, all the extra training has paid off.

The door starts to open back up again and a young man steps out from the opening, blaster still in hand pointed straight at my head. _This guy somewhat stupid, somewhat smart._ He seems to be around my age, high 20 maybe mid 30 standard years?

I can hear him mutter under his breath, "Woah…"

He lowers his blaster and puts it on his belt.

This time, he speaks a little louder towards me. "No need for credits!"

I'm puzzled, maybe my brain isn't analyzing this situation very well after my sprint. I can only reply with a subtle "Oh?"

"I've never seen a Mandalorian up close…" he paces towards me eagerly, a little too eagerly.

I take a more stable stance and hover my hand over my blaster. He immediately notices my defensiveness and takes a step back and puts his hands in the air, palms facing me. He speaks in an almost mocking tone,

"I am no threat."

_The audacity of this guy…_

"Fine." I relax and use my body language to show that I no longer feel threatened.

I step forward and retrieve my savings, quickly shoving them in my small belt compartment back where they were moments before. I waltz into the ship, knowing the poor guy wouldn't try to shoot me with his bl-

I hear his blaster go off, feeling the impact of the blow right on the center of my back. The blast pushes me forward and I regain my balance. Then I turn around and grab hold of both of my blasters and with a fluid-like motion, I shoot his blaster out of his hand all in a matter of a second. My gaze drifts to his face, to see his last expression before I shoot him, and I'm taken aback by his almost sparkle-filled eyes and mouth open in disbelief. His face reminds me of some desert kid that gets to have a full cup of cold freshwater all for themself for the first time.

He only mutters to himself again, "Woah… that's real beskar..."

_Okay, what the actual kriff. This guy isn't only stupid, but he's a lunatic. Funny how earlier I tried not to look like the lunatic when he already is one._

This time, he speaks clearly. "I've got a young boy at home, and I've started to tell him about the legends of the Mandalorians. Although I don't know which stories are true or false, they are stories that my parents have told me when I was little. I would be so- I mean- my boy would be so happy to know that his papa got to meet a real Mandalorian and that a Mandalorian flew on our ship!" The grown man almost seems as if he's going to explode with excitement. "Could you- Could you tell me about one of your battles? You can tell me on the way to Nevaro."

I say, attempting to sound unamused, "To make it official, we have a deal?"

His eyes light up once again. "We have a deal."

He picks up his blaster, which looks like it would never be able to shoot again, and places it back on his belt again not even questioning whether it still works or not. I look closely at his gear and the inside of his ship as he escorts me to the cockpit. He's not wearing anything special, something of what a civilian would wear when they are leisure traveling and his ship is fairly empty with only a few supply bags and crates. I've never seen this model of a ship before, It seems like something that he either completely built himself, or somehow combined two different ship parts to make this one.

He breaks the silence, "So, which battle are you going to tell me about?"

"Depends on what kind of battle you want to hear. I've got gruesome ones, one on one, large scale, you name it."

He starts up the ship then turns back to address me. "Well, first I'd like to know your name before you start telling the story. Mines Jaxglen Canhar, you can call me Jax for short."

"This wasn't part of the deal," I state simply.

"But how am I supposed to imagine the story without a name? Come on, I'm giving you a free ride to Nevaro, that's all the way out in the outer rim territories. At least give me a name to remember you by…"

"I don't have a name. Just call me Mandalorian." I quickly say because this guy won't stop prying.

"Really? That seems, so, unoriginal. Don't you have a code name so you can identify yourself out of the other Mandalorians?" He sounds very confused. "Wouldn't that be a logistical nightmare? Like, if you were in a crowd of Mandalorians and someone shouted "Mandalorian!" on the top of their lungs, would all the Mandalorians turn their heads to check whether they've been called? If so," he laughs a bit under his breath. "That would be a funny sight to see!"

First, this guy mocks me, then he mocks the creed.

He continues, "So if that extremely unrealistic expectation is what you abide by, then I assume that the stories are true when they say that you can't take off that helmet in front of anyone. So are the stories true? If so, that's crazy man, crazy."

I passive-aggressively say "this is the way." to give him an answer and to tell him that I do not appreciate his mockery.

As we break through this planet's thick atmosphere I can hear and feel the rumbling of the ship beneath me. We both sit silent now, and he seems focused on making sure the ship doesn't rip to shreds while his arms are frantically flying all over the place to press buttons and switch levers. Finally, the ship stops shaking and its smooth sailing, he takes a deep breath and apologizes to me for the shaky takeoff. I say nothing in response. After a few more moments, he presses a button that I assume sets the ship to autopilot, and he turns to face me.

"Look, I'm sorry Mandalorian. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings." he notices how it sounds like he's talking to a child, but he doesn't correct himself. He waits for my response.

_Why is he talking to me like some child, I'm about the same age as him._ This only makes me angrier, but I keep my mouth shut because the last thing I want to do is say the wrong thing when I'm angry. Again. Not to mention It's been possibly a standard year or two since I've had to talk to someone, let alone try and control my anger towards them.

He's pleading now, "Please, I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine." I interrupt. The last thing I want is a pity party from my crazy chauffeur. "Tell me your pick of battles and I'll tell you one story, one story only." I try to forget my anger.

He straightens his back and seemingly tries to look proud of something. He then booms,

"This is the way!"

He looks at me, the way he turns is like he's asking for confirmation on whether he did it right. Other than the fact that he said it almost completely out of context, and that he does not know much about Mandalorians, it's slightly humbling to have someone trying to support me and nice to have someone that isn't after my beskar. I give him a slight nod because I don't want to shatter his enthusiasm for Mandalorians and sever his rare relationship with our legends.

"Ok, so, could you tell me about a one on one battle?" he asks.

"Sure, I'll tell you about a duel between me and someone that stole Mandalorian armor."

He sits comfortably and stares eagerly at my visor, I can tell he is attempting to look at my eyes. He's just like an oblivious child, starstruck by my presence. I'm pretty sure he's not a lunatic anymore, even though his actions earlier were impulsive. Then I also reposition myself a little more comfortably before I tell him about the battle between me and the imposter. As I speak, I can tell by the way he looks at me that is enjoying every little detail I share.

* * *

After I finished my story, we still had some time to kill before we got to Nevaro.

"Woah! So you used your shock weapon to essentially taser them long enough to take back the armor? And you could cuff them before they could regain their control?" He asks eagerly once he notices that I have finished the story and is not taking yet another dramatic pause.

"Yep. The guy was harder than I thought to take down so I had to up the power of my suit to even make the tasing work. Honestly, I'm surprised the guy didn't die, I was using lethal amounts of charges… and after the battle, I learned that to get the armor he had ambushed one of my brothers while he was injured, so I presented him to the rest of the Mandalorians and let them decide his fate since I was in the middle of a time-sensitive mission when I ran into him." I explained. "I hope that the man gets what he deserves for being a coward," I added bitterly.

The child-man, er, Jax, was still sitting in the same position from when I started to tell the story, and It has been more than a couple of hours. He still sits there motionless, processing the whole story. He seems to still be staring at me, but his mind is somewhere else probably imagining the whole thing going down like a movie. I lean back in the chair and look out at the warping space around us, with all the stars' lights making long streaks as we pass. I tilt back at Jax, and he's still staring at where my helmet was, but now there's only a wall since I've moved. It must have been at least a couple of minutes that passed and he's still frozen, with his mouth open with awe and I question whether he had a stroke of some sort, so I wave my hand in front of his face to check whether he's responsive. This finally snaps him back to reality.

"Oh! Sorry I was imagining the whole thing going down! I wish I was there to watch a warrior in action. Sorry about earlier when I said that you didn't seem to look like one, you're just, kinda really dirty right now."

I look at my reflection in the windshield, he's right. My paint job is flaking along with the now crusty mud, and am shocked that I didn't notice all the shrubs tangled up on my horns. It almost looks like I'm wearing a nest on my head. I am tempted to take it off right now, but it would dirty his poor ship even more than what I've already done to its interior. While I was examining myself in the reflection, Jax decides to lean closer towards me to possibly get a better look at my armor. Although I don't know what his intentions are, I know that he is not trying to be a threat, he is most likely just insanely curious and can't hold himself back.

Until he lays his hand on my half ripped up the cape, and pushes it over to the side to reveal my slightly less muddy shoulder plate. This guy Is a bit too close for comfort.

"Knock it off," I say while shooing his hand away.

He immediately responds. "Can I touch it?"

"No."

"Why?" he's pleading again.

"It wasn't part of the deal, I told you a story and now it's your turn to get your side of the deal done. It seems like we are still a couple of hours out so I'd like to make it clear I won't be saying much for the rest of the ride." I say, even though I still would like to talk to him since he is so receptive to what I say.

I push back my cape to where it was before, and I face the very front of the ship again, contemplating whether or not this would be a good place to get some shut-eye.

"Oh, ok. I understand," he says flatly. After a couple more minutes he says, "I'm going to go sleep now, so feel free to doze off soon. We should be at Navarro in a couple of hours."

I don't say anything in response, I lay there motionless pretending that I'm already asleep.

He whispers "oh- sorry I didn't mean to be so loud I'll just sleep now then-"

He swivels his chair in the same direction I'm facing and the back of his chair flattens to make almost half of a cot. I am tempted to try to see if the chair that I'm sitting on can do that too, but I'm supposed to be asleep. I wait until I hear his slow constant breathing, and occasional snoring to double-check that he's asleep. Once I am sure that he is in deep sleep I allow my eyes to close and I let my mind drift off to a peaceful slumber.

* * *

"Wakey wakey Mandalorian!" Even though my eyes are still closed I can imagine Jax waving his hands in front of my visor. "We are about to land, thought I'd give you a heads up!"

"Thanks," I half-heartedly reply

I open my eyes to see the planet's landscape cover most of the windshield. _Finally, Navarro._ I wipe some grime off of my visor to get a better look at the planet, the one that I miss so dearly.

"What's on Navarro that you're so eager to see?" He must have noticed how much this place means to me. He quickly notices that he's asking a question that's outside of the deal again and tries to catch himself. "I mean, that wasn't part of the deal, but can you just tell me?"

I watch his reflection against the glass in front of me and I can make out he is trying to do _porg_ eyes to get me to answer him. This of course doesn't work.

"No," I say again, for what it seems like the thousandth time.

"Please?"

"No," I say in a more stern tone.

He pauses for a moment and seems drained of excitement, then dismisses the topic. He starts the landing sequence. He's not frantically pressing buttons like when we left, and the ship isn't quaking as much as before. We remain silent for the rest of the ride to allow Jax to concentrate on his flying. _Things would be so much easier if I had a ship._ I look at Jax, he looks as if he's an imposter in his ship. _I wouldn't be with this guy, and I wouldn't have to strike a deal with someone whenever I need to get from one place to another. Crink, I wouldn't have been stranded on that godforsaken planet._ I yawn and stretch a bit, knowing I probably would be greeting and saying hello to the others for at least the next couple of hours. I plan on hanging out in the covert for a little while before I get back to my normal swing of bounties though. We land next to Navarro city and the town seems to have grown since I last was here. He opens the cargo door so we can exit.

"Alrighty! We're here now so feel free to-" He stops himself as he watches me already walking out of the ship.

"Thanks for the ride," I say as I'm already out the door.

I glance at Jax one last time before leaving and he looks sad and disappointed that his passenger has already left. I almost feel bad for leaving so soon, but I can't wait to see the other Mandalorians any longer and I most likely would never have to see Jax ever again. As I trek behind some buildings in the city, I give my mental farewell and then I start to swiftly slip into the sewers.


	2. Misunderstanding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Woman Mandalorian finds out that the covert is now abandoned, while most of the other members of the creed died while she was away. She blames Mando a heck lot and makes him feel really bad because of her misunderstanding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I low-key just feel bad for Mando in this chapter D: I also upped the pacing cause I noticed that the first chapter was kinda slow...

"Wait! Stop!" I hear a low voice call out

 _Shab,_ I've already been spotted. I close the hatch as fast as I can and descend into the familiar sewer maze. I run to the nearest corner and plant my back against the wall, waiting to see if my pursuer will follow. I can't lead a civilian to the covert.

"Ma'am what are you doing!" the man yells again

I am silent, and I peek around the corner just enough to have my helmet zoom in on the entrance. He climbs down the ladder, looking cautiously every which way, and mutters to himself something that I can't quite catch. He jumps down and nearly stumbles over into the sewage, he has one blaster on his belt but does not seem intent to use it.

"Hands where I can see them," I say, allowing my voice to echo around us.

He lifts his arms in the air, palms open.

"Well which direction am I supposed to be facing, I don't do well with this whole getting arrested thing!" the man almost laughs at himself.

I reveal my position but still keep my distance, I don't want to underestimate my opponent at the moment. I showcase him both of my blasters, pointed straight at his head. The man gives me an amused look and lowers his hands.

"I never said that you could lower your hands!" My voice echoes out again.

"Oh don't worry, I keep good secrets around here." He distances himself from the sewage. "I assume you are here to meet mando? If so I'll leave you to it, although I'm surprised you guys didn't decide to meet somewhere more… sanitary." He quickly backpedals and says "I mean, I didn't mean to insult your home and all, but the bar seems like a much better meeting spot than the old abandoned place. Not sure whether the golden helmet lady is still there though."

_Is he talking about the covert?_

He continues to talk since I don't respond to him. "Lady, I was just talking to mando a few minutes ago. I think mando somehow forgot about your little meeting in secret since he didn't seem like he needed to be anywhere at the moment."

 _Who is he talking about? What happened?_ I hold my blasters ready, still firm instance. "Hands. Up." I manage to say before I hear someone coming down the ladder too.

The person climbing down is a very muscular woman, her hair flipped to one side. She skips the last couple of steps and lands expertly. She turns to face me, already alert since now I have my right blaster aimed at her head and my left aimed at the man.

"Cara, I am sure glad to see you! How'd you know I was down here?" the man exclaims.

"I saw you go down into the sewers and didn't come up for a bit. Thought I'd check things out." she simply states. "Glad I came down when I did." She gives me a cold stare.

_Great, now there's two of them._

The woman named Cara whispers something to the man and he nods comprehensively, and I interrupt their exchange.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Hands up!" I say as threateningly as possible, I don't want to kill people right when I have just arrived back.

They both ignore me, the man mutters something into Cara's ear. Have they lost respect for Mandalorians?

The man starts, "Lady. pl-"

Before he can finish, I scope in and shoot the blaster on his belt. It flies off and falls into the sewage next to him. This alerts Cara and she draws a blaster and points it towards me while the guy is noticing what I've done. I shoot the blaster out of her hand too, and I unintentionally cause it to ricochet off the wall and slam into the man's face. They both look at me apprehensively, as if they were just realizing that I was a Mandalorian.

Before I can make a statement, I feel a metal line wrap around my body, tangling both of my arms along with it. Before I can detangle myself, the metal grappler digs into my skin through one of the cracks in my armor and the string tightens around me, disabling my ability to shoot. A metal covered arm comes around my neck and holds me firmly in place.

_Great. Now I'm in a headlock._

We stand there for a second, both of us deciding on what to do next. Before my opponent can make their move, I flick both of my wrists to enable power to my suit. I set it to standard human levels to taser my opponent. I feel their body constrict and their grip grows tighter on my neck, and I can't breathe. I up the voltage a little bit, then shut it off just to check whether their tightened grip is voluntary.

The arm goes limp and I'm able to breathe again, so I cough and gasp for air. I can tell that the body behind me falls backward since I can no longer feel their pressure behind me but then I feel a sudden pull to the ground.

_Oh, the line is connected to them._

I get pulled down with the body and we both fall on the cement floor with a collective _clang._

Cara's shout echos loudly through the pipeline, ringing in my ears. "Mando!"

I am laying on the floor, back to my opponent and I'm still tangled in headlock-persons metal wire. I squirm and twist only to stop myself to notice that the grappler hook has dug deeper into my skin, and with every movement of struggle, the pain stabs through my body. _That's gonna leave a scar alright._

I look over to my opponent laying next to me, to finally see who tried to choke me to death. I'm surprised to see a male Mandalorian. A wave of guilt passes through me. _kriff, I didn't mean to taser a fellow Mandalorian. I should have known when I saw his arm wrap around my neck._

The buff woman and the not-so-buff man crouch beside the other Mandalorians' metal body, unsure of whether he's okay or not.

_Why did a fellow Mandalorian attack me?_

"Mando, come on buddy stay with me now…" Cara sounds slightly frantic, she's pushing and shoving at his motionless body to get him to wake.

"Hey!" the non-Mandalorian man commands at his hand, I assume some communication device. "Somebody quick! Get down in the sewers next to the covert with a med-pack," He glances down at the Mandalorian beside me, he looks unscathed and untouched other than the fact he's unresponsive. "Or something to carry mando out of here! Quick!"

I pretend I didn't just hear the man mention the covert, and I try to just focus on the task on hand which is escaping this mess. I'm just laying there, mirroring the person I'm wired to. Apparently, I've been deemed "not a threat" by their lack of interest in me. I try to sit up, only to be met by the reminder that I have a metal hook latched into my side. I feel a warm stream of liquid getting absorbed by my clothing. I let out a frustrated groan, knowing I really shouldn't be moving if I can feel that much blood flowing.

The two other conscious people in the room still make no notice of me again, the woman still pushing at the Mandalorian man with even more desperation. I check and I'm glad to find that his chest plate is slowly rising up and down, which means he's fine.

"No need for all that, he should be up in 5 to 10 minutes," I say it sounds weaker than intended. I clear my throat again and try to say something to assure that I am in tip-top shape. "I just tasered him a bit… " I hear my own voice trail off.

_I'm losing blood, fast._

I can't look down at where the grappler has snagged onto me but I can tell that it's larger than I initially thought. I can still feel the constant warm flow of blood seeping into my clothing. I regret squirming so much earlier, I should have thought things through better. I notice stars dancing around in my sight, and I find it hard to keep focus. _Kriff, I'm going to pass out already._ As a last attempt of movement, I lock my helmet to my head, so nobody can take it off while I'm temporarily disabled. Er, at least assuming they will treat my wound and that I would even survive.

_Going out with a grappler wound, huh. And by possible friendly fire. What a way to go._

I want to let them know that I need medical assistance since I really don't want to die with a grappler. I was imagining my death more like a blaster wound in a battle.

I curse " _Kriff-_ " hearing my voice intensely breathy and modulated.

I hear muffled noises of voices as my body goes limp, then everything turns black.

* * *

I wake.

_Good, I'm not dead._

When I open my eyes I see that I am on a table, a very uncomfortable one but I am still grateful that they decided to keep me alive. I test my body by sitting up. The wound on my side still aches and my hands are free. I glance down to see that I am still in all of my armor wrapped in an array of bandages and cloth. I notice old blood crusting on the outer edges of some. I'm still extremely dirty, but I can tell that there was an attempt at cleaning me up around the area of the wound.

_How long was I out?_

But this didn't matter much anymore, I still needed to escape. I climb from the table slowly, glad to learn I'm still in good shape. I practice my stealth to the door of the supply room, and I automatically reach for my blasters. They aren't there of course. I check my secret compartment for my knife, and that's gone too. I check my money, grenades, and I quickly find that literally anything that isn't sewn or fastened on me is gone.

I decide that I just need to escape, get to the covert then resupply before coming back to retrieve my stuff.

I hurriedly walk down the empty hallway and come across a door that looks like an exit. I peek around the corner to see the bustling markets and then I slip out of the building. I get the sudden chill that I'm being watched, and I look around as people pass by me.

_Of course, I'm being watched, some people don't get to see a Mandalorian every day._

The memories of the over-enthusiastic pilot come to mind and I still feel guilty for just leaving him so abruptly and I shoo the thought away. I walk into an alleyway and slip into the sewers again, this time uninterrupted.

I still feel like somebody's watching me. I dart my head around and use my helmet sensors to try and catch a heat signature of someone spying on me. I get nothing, and I dismiss the feeling because I think I'm being paranoid because of what happened earlier. I trek the same path I've followed years before, and for the rest of the trip, I am silent and forcefully trying to remember the right turns to get to the covert.

* * *

As I approach my destination I don't hear quiet mumbled conversations that I'd normally hear. This is unusual, so I put my helmet receiver all the way up and I can only hear silence other than the occasional splash of sewer water and muffled talking from the market above me.

_Huh…_

As I turn the last corner I see nothing. It looks just like all the other places in the sewers that I've walked through. _Did I make the wrong turn?_ I examine a familiar crack on the wall that has only gotten bigger. _No, this is the right place._ I cautiously walk through the empty hall and look around for any clues to hint where everyone has gone. I turned the corner to enter the armory room, and there is no trace that anyone was here. Even the place where the armorer melted and formed our beskar is gone, what's only left is half a rock column in the middle of the circular room.

I'm in shock. _Did they already move the covert?_

"Nobody's here anymore." a gruff voice intrudes the silence.

I quickly turn around to face the entrance of the room where I see the Mandalorian that I fought earlier. The quick movement causes my wound to give stabbing pains as a complaint and I have to make an effort not to falter.

I demand, "Where did everyone go?"

He doesn't respond, he only tilts his head a bit in possible curiosity or confusion.

I repeat with a harsher tone. "Where did everyone go?"

The thought passes through me that this Mandalorian might not actually be one, he might be an imposter. I step back a few paces to put some distance between us so I can have as much time as possible to react if he were to try and get the jump on me.

I ask a different question. "Wait. Have you sworn to the creed?"

"Yes." his voice is steady.

"Then where is the new location of the covert?" I ask, reassured that he would know since he's part of the creed.

"You don't know?" Now he definitely seems confused.

"No, that's why I'm here if you haven't noticed already." I know he asked a rhetorical question but I make a point to answer anyway.

He stops himself from answering immediately as if trying to find the right words to tell me. He stands there silently for a bit, thinking to himself.

"There is… no new location… " His voice trailed off, almost sounding sad.

"No… new location?" I restate, trying to digest what he said. "What do you mean, "no new location" ?"

He waits a few moments before responding again.

"There was an attack." He states simply, weighing his words carefully. "We… didn't win the battle." he finishes.

"A battle?" I repeat.

This place doesn't seem to be in the wreckage at all, I doubt it's possible for all of us Mandalorians to lose a small scale battle. And who were we against? Most likely civilians and they are no match for us even with their numbers.

"Impossible," I state, my reasoning rock solid.

"It was leftover imps. From the empire." He explains, breaking my rock-solid reasoning to sand.

"What?" I'm still processing everything that he's said until a thought hits me. _Then why is he still alive if he fought along with them, he does not look like he sustained a lot of damage from battle based on his brand new, shiny armor. Wait. Brand new armor? A completely new set of beskar armor? How did he get his hands on so much beskar at once?_

I eye his armor cautiously and he takes note, and I don't care.

 _The only way he could get that much beskar nowadays is that he let his brothers and sisters die in battle to wreak the benefits. How else would he gain so much beskar at once?_ Anger boils inside of me. _This coward in front of me did not fight in the battle for the benefit of the clan, he allowed their defeat._

"And where were you when this happened?" I say, attempting to keep my rising anger quelled.

No response.

I can't stop myself, I can hear my tone rising. "How did you get a fully new cast of armor, and why are you still here if you fought along with the others?" I allow myself to shout. "How come you didn't help them till the end? Huh? What did you do to try and prevent all of… This!" I gesture my arms to show that I'm referring to the disappearance of the covert.

I wait for his response, but he only shifts his stance uncomfortably.

_He's guilty. He is a man with no honor._

He replies with false confidence, "I was on a mission that I had to complete first."

"And what's so important that you prioritize your mission above everyone else?" I am still angry at him, but still trying not to be completely blinded by anger.

"It was to protect a foundling." He quickly adds, almost convincing himself that he did the right thing by abandoning the others in battle.

"And where is this foundling of yours?" I ask quizzically, debunking his every possible lie to try and preserve his own honor.

He pauses again and clenches his fist.

The man's voice has now become slow and solemn as his visor tips down towards the ground, "he's… not with me anymore."

"Right," I say, and before I even think, the words slip out of my mouth. "So first you abandoned the clan, then you abandoned your foundling." I let myself continue, venting my anger at him. "You are a man without honor." I pause before continuing. "You are not worthy to be a Mandalorian." I let my harsh words settle in the air.

He doesn't move, still standing at the entrance which is blocking my exit. We are still at a standoff, but I feel that I have all the power in the room now. I am about to trudge out the door, while intentionally shoving him off to the side to display more of my disappointment until my plans are interrupted when we both hear footsteps coming closer to our location.

"Mando! There you are! Did you find her?" I can hear Cara's voice echoing through the pipeline.

He doesn't respond, his helmet still tilted towards the ground.

She appears around the corner and she looks into the armory room- or at least the previous armory room.

"Oh. There she is…" She trails off, noticing how much tension there is between us at the moment.

She looks at me with confusion as I stand my ground, making it apparent that I'm angry at this traitor.

"Charming. Did you just tell her about the covert? She looks a bit aggressive, or maybe she's just always this aggressive." she seems to have read my mind. "Lady Mandalorian, there's no need to get angry alright? Let's just go back up to the bar and get a drink- or just hang out and get to know each other for a bit?"

"He's a traitor," I state, although I doubt the lady would care.

"No, he's not." she corrects me.

I notice she's got a new blaster on her belt. _Great, now I'm at the disadvantage._

"He broke the creed." I re-state, making sure she understands.

She pauses and looks over at the other Mandalorian, still standing there like a statue. Then she looks over at me.

"Let's just go alright?" her voice is no longer directed to just me, but to the both of us.

She disappears behind the wall as she walks back to the bar, then the Mandalorian slowly turns his head away and follows her. I am left in the room alone now, just me and my thoughts.

_What am I supposed to do now?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> RIP Mando's emotional stability


	3. Run-in

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Manda forgives Mando, but Mando still doesn't forgive her for her hurtful words in the last chapter. They talk in a bar and grill, and Jax gets to meet Mando, Cara, and Greef. Bo-Katan swoops in and fights mando for the dark saber again.

I'm not in shape to work, and the covert is gone.

_The covert is gone._

The information sinks in a little deeper and my chest plate feels heavy.

_Am I feeling guilty?_

I'm mentally transported to a scene of my brothers and sisters as they fight for their lives, dying in battle. Their last battle cry echoes within me.

_I may have been shaming the other man for not fighting with them, but where was I when they needed me too?_

My heart sinks deeper and deeper to the familiar depths of darkness. I feel nothing but guilt and sadness, and to top it all off, I remember the words I had said to the Mandalorian. _"You are not worthy to be a Mandalorian."_ What if he had the same circumstances as me, and what if he had not known about the battle either? What if his foundling died trying to protect the rest? I grunt in frustration.

Since I give myself no choice, I follow the sounds of their footsteps to the bar.

As I walk into the bustling bar and grill, I see that Cara, the Mandalorian, and the other guy from earlier are all waiting for me. I make my way over to the table and sit in the open seat across from The Mandalorian. I think I've forgiven him, what's done is done. I extend my hand as a peace offering, but he doesn't take it.

"So, "the man from earlier starts. "Names' Greef. Yours?"

"Mandalorian."

"That's gonna get confusing around here real quick!" Greef is almost laughing at his own statement again while patting the other Mandalorian on the back a few times.

Both of us stare back at him, giving him an unimpressed look from under our helmets.

"No seriously, what am I supposed to call you guys? Oh, how about you're number one," he points at the Mandalorian across from me. "And you, number two!" He gives himself a little chuckle again.

"I don't want to have to call him Piss, and I'm not being called Shi-. _"_

Greef lets out a belly laugh, and Cara gives a surprised scoff at my dry humor. The Mandalorian doesn't seem to react much to the joke, so much for trying to break the ice.

"Manda!" I hear a familiar voice shout behind me, and I turn around to see the pilot's face, his smile stretching ear to ear.

He scurries over to me, and I let him continue.

"Oh! So _that's_ why you were so eager to get back!" he motions towards the Mandalorian. "Glad that I could help you get back to your husband!" He says cheerfully.

Everyone at the table flinches, and Greef stares at me in the wildest look of confusion, then back at the Mandalorian with a bit of amusement.

"Try again," I state quickly before things get awkward.

"Uh… Boyfriend!" He says triumphantly.

"Nope. "

"Bestie? "

I say nothing.

"Friend-? "

"Okay, just- stop trying." I turn to face the man-child. "I wasn't here for _him_." the tone of my voice comes out harsher than I would like.

"Ex…?" he asks, his smile fading.

I give out a frustrated sigh, then I grab a seat from behind me and put it next to me as an invitation to join the conversation.

"Just met him. I was here for another reason." I put it simply. Hopefully, that'll straighten out some confusion.

Jax takes the seat gratefully and his smile grows even bigger than before. He gratefully takes the lead on the conversation, completely disregarding what happened seconds before.

"Woah! Your armor is way newer than hers! Or at least, looks cleaner-" He's directing it at the Mandalorian.

"Who's this?" The Mandalorian replied, addressing his question to me.

"He's the pilot that got me to Navarro. His name's Jax." I explain while Jax nods in agreement.

The Mandalorians gruff voice asks another question. "You don't have a ship?"

I reply, "Never did. How about you?"

The Mandalorian is quiet again.

Cara steps in for him. "He _had_ a ship. He kind of does now, but it's not the same." I can tell she's talking about a sensitive topic for him, and she quickly changes the subject. "How about we all introduce ourselves. I think some of us need to learn everyone's names first."

Jax seems excited at the mention of talking to another Mandalorian. "Names' Jax, but Manda already told you guys that!"

"Cara."

"Greef Carga, head of the ports' round here!"

Now it's down to me and the Mandalorian. There's a pause, and I take the name that Jax has been calling me. "Manda."

"Mando." Mando finishes, still sounding slightly defensive.

Just as I am about to start another topic, I spot the glint of another Mandalorian in the background. I zoom in, and I see another Mandalorian helmet. The figure makes her way towards our table.

"Heads up," I say, as I nod in the direction she's approaching, but Mando and Cara are already on high alert.

She stops several feet away and faces us, and she does the unthinkable. I watch her as her pressure lock disengages. She pulls the helmet off of her head, revealing her orange, shoulder-length hair in the middle of a bar. She has a blue headband, which I assume is also made of beskar. I am so dumbfounded at how easily she can take off her helmet, how little the creed means to her.

Mando speaks first. "Bo-Katan."

"Mando." She greets with an icy tone. I watch as her eyes move around the table, checking all the faces here, and stops when her gaze lands on me. "Who's Jungle girl?"

 _Jungle girl?_ I look down at my cuirass, littered in crusting mud, shriveled vines, and leaves. I'm reminded that I have a nest of vines on my head, and I take off the tangled bundle and throw it at the headband lady's feet. Headband girl looks up at me with a smirk.

"Dunno." Mando's voice seems a little off-put by the headband lady's presence.

"It's been a week. You are still not on Mandalore where you should be if you are to take the throne." Bo-Katan says in an intimidating tone, "or we fight again."

"Can't." He insists.

The next words fly out of my mouth. "Yeah, why don't you fight her? You didn't seem to have a problem with fighting me."

Both Mando and Bo-Katan snap their gaze towards me.

"Mando attempted to get the jump on me. But I won the little duel." I say, claiming victory.

This seems to set off Mando, and he finally adds to the conversation. "She was shooting at them. I wasn't sure whether she was a threat or not." he gestures towards Cara and Greef. "And she didn't win."

I stand. "Well, you could have given me some explanation first. Instead of essentially stabbing me from behind, tying me in a string, then put me in a headlock."

The woman Mandalorian raises an eyebrow at Mando.

Mando also stands. "Like I said. You were shooting at them. And I didn't know that the grappler had stabbed you, I thought it just hooked on your armor."

I quickly corrected him, "I was shooting their blasters, and I wasn't going to shoot unarmed civilians."

Silence follows my words.

"Woah... " I hear Jax's voice break the tension. "You guys are so intimidating!"

_Oh. I completely forgot that he was here._

The break in the tension seems to have made Bo-Katan attack. She's hurling herself at Mando, and he resists the shove. Jax screams and clutches my arm tight. I can't shake him off and try to help. Cara grabs a weapon as Bo-Katan's body slams on the table, shattering it into large shards. Greef is thrown backward as I drag Jax away from the fight, but then I hear him yelp as he's tugged away from me, losing his grip. Cara stops. Jax is being held captive by a slightly smaller feminine Mandalorian, a blaster is pointed towards his head.

"Leave them to fight. Or else his life."

"Woah there." Cara sets down her knife. "Isn't killing civilians against your way or something?"

"He's not innocent if he stands in the way of the future for all Mandalorians." Her grip around Jax's neck tightens and he gives a whimper.

Mando runs out of the bar, I don't know how he escaped Bo-Katan's grip. The smaller Mandalorian seems to be off guard so I take the opportunity to kick the side of her helmet, knocking her off balance as I grab Jax to get out of there. I instinctively follow the direction of where Mando went, while Cara deals with the other Mandalorian.

Outside, I find Mando and Bo-Katan facing each other in a standoff, Mando is standing at the entrance of a ship. I hide both of us behind a shop nearby and observe.

Bo-Katan holds a small silver object in her hands. "I know you want this," she says as she addresses Mando. She displays the orb, rolling it around in the air.

Mando's hands tighten at his sides, and he gets ready to attack. Whatever that ball is, he wants it. Bad.

"Fight me and you can have it if you win or lose." She continues. She still holds the ball, still in its precarious position. "It's a win-win for you."

I turn my attention back to Jax, which is quivering in fear. I try to use the most soothing voice I can. "Hey. Jax. Stay here where it's safe. I need to go now."

He can only nod in confirmation and slowly release me from his death grip. I have a feeling that this is the last time we'll be seeing each other in a while, and I give him one last nod before I jump out from behind the shop.

My next moves are natural. I sprint and I snatch the important orb out of Bo-Katan's hand from behind and make a run for it. I'm going full speed towards Mando, with a headband lady trailing behind. I turn to check how close she is, and kriff, this girl runs fast. I jump into the ship and she follows suit, Mando already trying to shove her off. I run to the cockpit and start up the engines and I get the ship flying so if he shoves her off we won't have to worry about her anymore. After a minute or so, the commotion in the back of the ship settles and I turn to see that she is already gone.

"Get close to the bar. We need to get Cara." I hear his heavy breathing voice through the loud winds.

I follow his command and he jets out of the ship and he returns carrying the buff woman, struggling to keep hold of her as the jetpack sputters in complaint. They hover in the ship, and with a not-so-graceful landing and they collapse on the ship floor. I close the doors and it's finally quiet. Cara and Mando still lay on the ground, exhausted.

"Wait. Who's driving." Cara doesn't bother to look up.

"Manda." His voice is exasperated.

"I guess we have an addition to the team then."

There's a moment of hesitation, and he mutters "I guess."

Another long silence.

I set the ship to autopilot and turn around to face them. "So, what exactly is this thing?" I hold up the little sphere.

"That-" I hear his armor chink against the ship floor as he stumbles forwards towards me, "Is mine." He reaches for the ball, and I recoil.

"I'm not giving it to you until you tell me what it is." I hold the ball farther from his reach. "I just risked my life to get this for you, whatever this thing is." I start to examine the object, trying to figure out what's so special about it.

"Please," His voice is desperate, and he stretches across my body to try and get to it.

"At least tell me what it does." I stretch my hand out farther, struggling to keep the ball out of his reach

"It doesn't do anything," He's stubborn.

"Then why do you want it so bad? Is it a key to a million secrets? Tell me what I'm dealing with here. I can't just hand it over." He's basically climbing over me to get to the ball.

His irritated voice blasts out next to my ear. "Just -"

Cara snatches the ball out of my hands. "It's his sanity."

Mando climbs off of me and Cara plops the ball into Mando's hands. He handles it with care as if it was the most delicate thing in the world. He closely examines it, checking if it's okay, and then places it gently in one of the compartments on his belt.

"I just risked my life," I pause, confused on why I even did. "for _his_ sanity."

"Thanks." is all that Mando manages to reply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mando just wants Grogus ball back lol


End file.
